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UL to study fire-related materials, human behavior
Fire fighting is an essential part of rescue efforts following terrorist or natrural disasters; the materials now being used in buildings, and changing patterns of human behavior, have changed the fire fighting landscape, and DHS wants to know more about these changes
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Senator Inhofe may introduce a rival chemical plant safety bill
Chemical industry ally to offer chemical plant safety bill to rival the one being proposed by Senators Collins and Lieberman; new bill more hospitable to industry concerns about IST and protection of companies industrial secrets
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California trucking association supports port security measures
It was unclear for a while whether California trucking association would support background checks on the more 12,000 drivers who come in and out of the sprawling twin ports of Los Anegeles and Long Beach; the trucking association ow say it is for it
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GAO: Security of water treatment facilities below par
Water treatment facilities are inviting targets for terrorists because of the toxic chemicals they use and their proximity to population centers, but the water collection system is also vulnerable, and a recent report says not much has been done to protect it
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Trend: Responsible chemical plants adopt "inherent safer technology" on their own
The chemical industry has resigned itself to some form of federal regulations of safety measures at chemical plants; one of the major goals of industry lobbyists is now to make sure that safety legislation does not mandate plants to replace the most dangerous chemicals they produce or use with inherently safer chemicals; more than 200 plants have already made the switch on their own, showing that it is not economically prohibitive to do so
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Trend: Growing debate over safety of nuclear power plants
Worries about the rising price of oil and the degradation of the environment by fossil fuels have led to renewed interest in nuclear power plants; worries about terrorism, however, cut in the other
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Is San Francisco prepared for the next Big One?
One hundred years ago the earthquake which hit San Francisco killed 3,000, left more than 200,000 homeless, and destroyed more than 28,000 buildings. Is the city ready for the next one?
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Legislation to review foreign ownership of critical infrastructure introduced in New York
Bipartisan legislation proposed to review thoroughly requests by foreign entities who want to control parts of New York’s critical infrastructure
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Chemical company faulted in Georgia chemical release accident
The reckless behavior of a Georgia chemical plant is yet another proof — if one were needed — that “voluntary, industry-developed” chemical plant safety standards are anything but; forget safety measures: The company managers and engineers did not even bother to consult studies in the open literature about the new chemical process they were experimenting with
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Public-private coalition to coordinate security spending at Houston port
An innovative public-private coordination effort of security measures at and around the Port of Houston
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They try harder
Jay Leno said that they found a man in a cave in China whose handwriting was so small, he could put half a chapter of the New Testament on one strand of human hair; but this was only his hobby: His vocation was to write the fine print on rent-a-car contracts; well, Avis Europe hires a U.K. business continuity company to beef up disaster recovery systems in Avis’s Frankfurt, Germany, data center, so all these rent-a-car contracts could survive a disaster
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The meanings of resilience
The meaning of “is”: Many equate “business continuity” with “resilience” — but there are at least four different meanings business people attach to “resilience”; you should address all of them
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Bantu contributes to erosion of inter-service communication barriers
Making the uniformed services talk to each other is no mean feat, but Bantu is trying, offering a secure platform which allows military personnel instantly to locate and communicate across disparate military networks, locations, and computing platforms — and, yes, regardless of service affiliation
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Analysis: Tension between public safety, business interests
Who should supply public goods? Public safety is a public good, and as more of this particular good is sought, and its cost increases, the debate about who should provide it intensifies
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The long view
A Turning Point: U.S. Recognizes Agriculture as a Domain of Defense
The US has legitimized the role of food supply in national defense. It has recognized that in a world of rupture, a nation that cannot feed itself cannot defend itself. A new policy effectively ends the era of agriculture functioning solely as a commercial sector.
The U.S. Barely Bothers to Track Geoengineering. What Could Go Wrong?
Whether it’s cloud seeding or covering the Arctic in tiny glass beads, there’s little standing in the way of weather modification.